Sheet feed device



Sept. 10, 1935. o. KLElNscHMl-r Er AL SHEET FEED DEVICE Filed April 27, 1954 7 Sheets-Sheet 1 Sept. l0, .1935.

o. KLElNscHMlT ET AL SHEET FEED DEVICE 7 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 27, 1934 Sept. 10, 1935. o. KLElNscHMlT Er AL SHEET FEED DEVICE Fiied April 27,1954' 7 sheets-sheet 3 Sept. 10, 1935. o. KLElNsvc-HMIT ET AL 2,014,181'

SHEET FEED DEVICE Filed April` 27, 1934 7 Sheets-Sheet 4 i a 5. ma, @M

9 www Sept. 10, '1935. o. KLElNscHMlT ETAL 2,014,181 I SHEET FEED DEVICE Filed April 27, 1934 '7 Sheets-Sheet 6 Sept. 10, 1935 v y SHEET FEED DEVICE Filed April 27, 1934 7 sheets-shed 7 Mara/ o. KLElNscHMlT ErAL v 2,014,181 v l Patented Sept. 10, 1935 SHEET FEED DEVICE A oscar mcinscnmit and Plagwitz, Germany,

Brehmer, Leipzig-Plagwitz, Germany,

Oskar Mller, Leipzigassignors to Gebruder a limited partnership of4 Germany` Application April 27, 1934, Serial In G ermany May 4, 1933 25 Claims. (Cl. 112-21) The present invention relates to sheet feed devices for use in placing folded sheets or book sections straddlewise upon a pivotal sheet carrier such as the reciprocatory stitching saddle of a 5 ,stitching machine for assembling and stitchingl books or book-pads in which, as is well known to those' skilled in'the art, the stitching saddle is pivotally mounted and adapted to assume alternately a work laying-on position and a'stitching position beneath the lstitching means which hereinafter will be referred to for the sake of convenience as the open and closed positions of the saddle.

In the operation of machines of this type the Work, hereinafter referred to as the folded sheet, usually is fed to the sheet carrier `or saddle'by hand or mechanically when the saddle is in the open position and the latter thereuponis moved to the closed position beneath the stitching means so that the folded sheet is attached to the previously stitched book or book-pad.` In the subse. quent' movement of the saddle to the .Open position the last stitched sheet thus is retained in its stitching position and the saddle performs an idle movement to the open position. To expedite the production of the machine ,return the saddleto the open position with all possible speed since when the saddleis vin the stitching position and also when moving to and from this position the sheet laying-on operation is suspended. On the other hand the length of time taken for each laying-on operation, when the latter is performed with the saddle stationary means, the signature first being positioned on the end of this saddle remote from the stitching means against a stationary stop on the wall of the machine; the folded sheet abuts the stop whereas the saddle slides through beneath'both 5 the stop and the sheet when it is withdrawn from the last stitched sheet, thus bringing the unstitched sheet to the oppositeor stitching end of the saddle. In the return motion of the saddle the newly applied signature is carried with it be- 10 neath the needles. l The last mentioned arrangement in practice could not successfully be used for stitching together a number of signatures to form a book or book-pad.

The object of the present invention is to pro- 15 vide an improved sheet feeding arrangement which possesses the advantages of both known arrangements without involving their disadvanit is essential to in the open position, obviously is a limiting factor c in the output of the machine, the other limiting factor of which is the safe speed with saddle may, in practice, be oscillated.

It is already known to extend the time of the work laying-on period in any given4 speed of revolution of such machines by using a rigid auxiliary table' constantly stationary in vthe lowermost or open position of the feeding and stitching saddle and from which the signature isprogressed vto the saddle when the latter is in the open-position. In spite of acceleration of -the `speed at which the signature is transferred to the stitching saddlethe latter remains for comparatively long periods'in the open position and in addition very complicated arrangements vare involved for receiving and registering the signatures thus laid on the saddle.

Also, in book already proposed to use instead ofthe usual pivotal feed saddle a saddle ofl doublelen'gth mov- Ving to and frolaterally beneath the stitching stitching machines it has bccny which the tages.

According to the present invention provision 20 is made of a sheet feed device comprising an auxiliary sheet carrier orl saddle associated with the main sheet carrier or stitching saddle and adapted to move therewith while a folded sheet is transferred from the auxiliary carrier tothe main carrier by means of a displaceable sheet-engaging member.

In one form of the invention the main carrier f or saddle may be extended to form the auxiliary carrier or saddle which thus yparticipates in the 30 pivotal motion of the main saddle, while in a second form ofthe invention the auxiliary saddle may be separately mounted'so as to move withthe main saddle throughy only part ofthe travel of the latter. The entire cycle of the stitching 35 operation can in consequence be utilized for laying-on the new folded sheet.l The sheet is not however abruptly thrown on to the stitching saddle but the sliding over from .the auxiliary carrier or saddle to the main saddle may extend over almost the entire reciprocatory movement of the main saddle. An interval of rest for the stitching saddle in the open position is no longer necessary but despite the rapid oscillation thereof which the present invention renders possible the rsheets are carefully slid up to the limiting stops on the main saddle. f l,

The 'sheets preferably are transferred from the auxiliary saddle to the main saddle by a mechan- ,ically actuated gripper the return motion of which can occur during the stitching because the gripper itself slidesr through beneath the newly 4applied sheet. This motion also may be comparatively slow because approximately the entire reciprocatory movement of the vmain saddle is available for the completed movement of the gripper. It is not necessary for there to be an interval of rest in the open position of thevmain saddle while at the same time the laying-on period is not limited to the open position of the auxiliary carrier or saddle. It may extend over the entire period of rotation of the machine because a further signature may be applied to the auxiliary saddle without obstructing the movement of a signature previously applied thereto and yet to be fed to the main saddle.

When laying the signature on the saddle the operator can sit in front of or at the side of the machine. In the first case which permits a better supervision of the stitching operation the amplitude of the swinging motion of the main saddle constitutes a certain limitation of production in spite of the fact-that the travel of the saddle can be kept very appreciably smaller than hitherto where a wide opening of the saddle facilitated the smooth laying on because the signature is now no longer laid on in the open rest position of the saddle. It lays within the scope of the present invention still further to limit this travel which in the case of the main saddle must have a certain minimum value in order to be able to strip off from the point of the saddle the forwardly directed stitched half of the signature which lies on the saddle. To this end the auxiliary saddle is arranged so as not to perform the complete stroke of the main saddle but to pivot only in'part therewith and thus for example is brought to rest in a sheet receiving position before the main saddle reaches the stitchingposition with the last received sheet. In this way its travel is reduced and the laying-on is facilii tated but care must be taken that the transfer of the signature to the main saddle does not occur until the opening motions of the two saddles again correspond which is possible without loss' of time because in any case the new signature can only pass to the main saddle when the previous signature has been stripped therefrom. 'I'his cannot occur until the commencement of the opening of the machine. Fundamentally this reduction of the travel of the auxiliary saddle 'could' l also occur in the open position of the saddleposition of the saddle downwardly. This requires only a correspondingly different distribution of the slide motion of the feed saddles. In order to attain this partial separation of the auxiliary saddle from the main saddle, the former must be provided with a separate drive control and the point of pivotation must preferably coincide with that of the main saddle.

The gripper or slide member which transfers the signature during the time of opening of the book stitching machine may be of any desired construction. Preferably it is so arranged that its return motion does not interfere with the laying on of a new signature on the auxiliary carrier or saddle so that it passes through beneath it into its initial position. The inventive idea is not limited to machines in which the feeding is effected manually. It may equally advantageously be applied to machines with automatic sheet feed. In this case the signature is applied by any suitable device to the auxiliary carrier or saddle preferably in the fully open or rest position thereof and is then transferred.

In order that the invention may clearly be understood, two 'constructional forms thereof will now be described with reference to the accompanyng drawings, in which:

Figs. 1 and 1a are elevational views of a book stitching machine of the swinging stitching saddle type commonly used to produce continuously stitched book pads, the machine being modified in accordance with the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an elevational view taken at right an- 5 gles to Fig. 1 and looking in the direction of the arrow A.

Figs. 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 are detail views, drawn to a. larger scale, of the sheet displacing means associated with the auxiliary sheet carrier or saddle, 10 Figs. 8, 9 and 10 are detail views, drawn to a larger scale, showing the arrangement and several steps of movement of the sheet registering and retaining means associated with the main carrier or stitching saddle, 15 Fig. 11 is an elevational View of an alternative arrangement of the main 'saddle and auxiliary saddle according to the present invention In which the saddles vare divided and perform associated but Yindependent movements, while 20 Fig. 12 is a View taken at right angles to Fig. 1l and looking in the direction of the arrow B.

Referring now to Figs. 1 and 2, the machine frame generally designated by the letter F includes upright supporting members I2, I3 and I 4 25 which support a bearing shaft 28. Arms 39, 39a rotatably mounted upon the shaft 28, carry at the free extremities thereof a stitching saddle S which is oscillated between the closed or stitching position beneath known thread stitching 30 means T and the open or work receiving position indicated by chain dotted lines in Fig. 2. A positively driven cam shaft II also journalled in the frame uprights I2, I3 and I4 and driven through known driving means (not shown) carries cam 35 grooved discs 6I which engage cam followers 62 carried by suitable extensions of the arms 39, 39a thus to impart reciprocatory movement to the saddle S in the rotation of the shaft II and cam v6I which, in known manner, are timed in ac- 40 vcordan'ce with the actuation of the stitching means. The mechanism so far described is that of the known stitching machines of this type, but in the present construction the saddle S is provided at the left hand side thereof, as viewed in 45 Fig. 1, with an extension or auxiliary saddle 4S which is at least equal in length to the saddle S so that in practice the work carrier or saddle S. S is approximately double the normal length of the saddles in such stitching machines. One ex- 50 tremity of the auxiliary saddle S is rigidly connected to the corresponding end. of the saddle S while the other extremity of the saddle S is supported by the arm 39h which is pivotally mounted upon the shaft 28. The auxiliary saddle 55 thus joined to the saddle S and pivotally supported so as to move about the axis common to the last mentioned saddle partakes of the movement of the latter to and from the work stitching position as above described. 'I'he work to be stitched, e. g. an opened folded sheet, is initially laid upon the saddle S either `manually or by automatic sheet feeding means of any suitable type and is moved from the auxiliary saddle to the main or stitching saddle by displaceable sheet engaging means. These means, as shown in the present construction, comprise a. pusher device P (Figs. 1 to 7) f whichy includes a carriage or slide member 53 adapted freely to slide upon the outer inclined faces of the saddle S and retained in position'thereon by means of a iiange piece 53a which engages the apex or ridge of the saddle S' as shown more particularly in Figs. 4 and 5.

The snae 5a carries a. nat bar 54 which is ad- 75 justably mounted in a slot in the former member and secured therein by means of a set screw 53h in such manner as to lie in contact with the face of the saddle and extending longitudinally thereof. The free extremity' of the bar 54 is bevelled as shown in Fig. 3 while a blade spring55 is secured to the upper surface of the bar. The underface of the spring' 55 is offset from the surface of the bar 54 and is provided with a. shoulder piece 59 which normally is urged by the spring 55 into contact with the bar while some part of the shoulder 59 overhangs a lateral edge of the barl as shown in Fig. 5. A sheet strap or block 41, secured to the upper surface of the bar 54, is located immediately behind the shoulder 59. An arm 2l secured to, and extending downwardly from, the slide 53 is bifurcated at its free extremity to connect with driving means, hereinafter described, whereby the. sheet displacing or pusher device P is reciprocated longitudinally of the auxiliary sadelle S'.

A stationary deilecting member56, positioned in the path of travel of the overhanging portion .of the shoulder 59 as shown in Figs, 3, 4, 5, 6 and '7 is supported by anyarm 51 which is adjustably mounted upon a rod or bar 58, thelatter beingpositioned to the rear of the saddle S and substantially parallel therewith. The deflecting member 56 has its upper surface cammed so that when the pusher device P is advanced in the direction ofthe arrow 64 (Fig. 3) the shoulder l59- contacts with the cammed surface of the member 56 and is lifted from the bar 54. The' base of the arm 51 also carries an abutment or stop I0 which extends into a slight valley in the back plate of the saddle S' thus to form a sheet-lay against which abuts an edge of the folded sheet placed upon the saddles. The sheet stop or lay i@ if desired could be mounted directly upon the saddle. A ramp or` plow 50 is secured to the rear edge of the slide member 53 and extends longitudinally of the front plate of they saddle S'.v The 1 tudinally member lis arranged so that its free extremity contacts with the saddle plate as shown or, if

desired, enters a slot extending longitudinally of i the saddle plate and serves'to lift the forward edgeof a sheet laid upon the saddle S' thus to.`

permit the pusher device P to slide beneath the sheet in its reciprocatory movement to the position shown in chain dotted lines in Fig. l. v

. The pusher device P is vadapted to move longiof the auxiliary saddle S in a reciprocatory movement from the' position shown in chain dotted lines in Fig. 1 to that shown in full lines in Fig. la. To effect this movement which obviously mustbe` timed inaccordance with the movement of the main saddle S an eccentric disc i5 provided with a groove I'5a is mounted xedly upon the shaft Il. a slot adapted loosely to embrace the shaft I I carries a follower roller IGa which engages the groove I5a so that in the rotation of the disc I5 the strap I6 is reciprocated in a substantially vertical direction. Thelower extremity ISb of the strap I6 passes through a guide block G5, whichis secured to a convenient frame member, and carries a. substantially horizontal slotted plate 69 which is loosely connected by means of a pin 61 with the slotted, free extremity of a. pivotal lever I1. The further extremity of the arm I1 is xed- A strap I5 provided with justably coupled by means of a pivotal rod I9 to a slide block or carriage 20 which slides upon a pair of stationary, parallel guide rails 23, 24, the latter extending substantially parallel with the auxiliary saddle S and supported at their 5 extremities by a bearing bracket 5I on the machine frame member I3 and the bearing bracket 25 secured to the frame upright I4. The slide member 20 is linked to the pusher slide 53 by` means of a rod 22 which is secured at its lower 10 extremity to the slide member 20 while its upper portion engages the forked arm 2I vto effect a. loose coupling. The rod 22 is shapedy in a c'urvature which has its radius upon the axial line of the shaft 29 i. e., the pivotal axis of the saddle 15 S and auxiliary saddle S' so that the forked arm' 2i freely slides upon the rod 22. Thus in the rotation of the shaft II to effect the operative movement of the saddle S the pusher device P is reciprocated longitudinally of the saddle S and 21; in timed relation to the operative cycles of the I machine.

In order that the sheets fed by the pusher device P from the auxiliary saddle S to the main saddle S may appropriately be retained upon 25 the latter in the correct stitching position the machine is provided with a-mechanically operated sheet retaining device. As shown in Figs. 1, 2, 8, 9 and l0, this consists of a lever 21 pivotally mounted at its lower extremity upon the 30 shaft 28 and extending upwards to a point above the arcuate path of travel of the saddle S. The upper extremity of the lever 21I is formed with horizontal bearing brackets 21a in which is journalled a rocking shaft 29, the latter extending 35 parallel with the saddle S and having xedly se- `cured thereto a. rocking lever 3U and resilient arm being resiliently urged to assume this position 45 by means of the helical tensile spring 38. At its upper extremity the lever 21 is provided with a second buiferor stop 44 which is arranged to engage a corresponding buffer or stop 43 secured to astationary member of the machine frame. The 50 engagement of the buffers or stops 43, 44 takes place whenthe main saddle S is'moved to the stitching position as shown in Fig. 1 and hereinafter described.

' The free extremity of the rocking lever 30, pro- 55 vided with a railer or cam follower roller 3|', is constantly urged vupward or in an anticlockwise vdirection of rotation about the axis of the shaft 29 by means of the `helical tensile spring 34 so that the cam follower 3l is held resilientlyv in 60 engagement with 'the under-cammed face 32 of the'guide strip 85 or the under-cammed face 33 of thedeflecting strip 36 according to the operative movement of the arm 21'. The cammed guide strip 35 islrigidly secured to a'. vertical s up- 65 port 35a rising from the frame of the machine, as shown in Fig. 2, while the deflecting strip 35 is secured to the footof an L-shaped bracket 36a which is pivotally mounted upon a stub shaft 31 journalled in a bearing bracket 31a the latter 70 being secured at the upper extremity of the frame member 35a. A helical tensile spring 49 anchored at its extremities to pins rigidly secured to the strip 35 and stub shaft 31 respectively urges the bracket 35a and strip 36 to rotate in clockwise 75 direction about the axis of the shaft 31 so that' the free extremity of the strip 36 is normally held against the cam face 32 at the point indicated by the reference 45a while that extremity of the strip 36 which is secured to the bracket 36a lies apart from the cam face 32 readily to permit the entry therebetween of the follower roller 3| in the anticlockwise movement of the arm 21. The sheet retaining blade springs 26 being rigidly secured to the shaft 29 are urged downwards resiliently 4to engage the apex of the saddle S or a folded sheet placed straddlewise thereon which engagement occurs when the saddle S is travelling to the closed Orstitohing position and is maintained until shortly before the saddle completes the closing movement.

e Sheet engaging springs 4| (Figs. 1, 2, 8, 9 and 10) co-operate with the sheet retaining members 26.V 'I'he springs 4| are secured to a bar 10 which extends parallel with the saddle S and is held above the latter by means of curved arms 42 which are rigidly supported by brackets attached to suitable members of the machine frame. The resilient springs 4| thus extend downwards into the path of travel of the apex of thesaddle S so as resiliently to engage the sheet carried thereon and wipe thereover in a manner which serves to retain and smooth the sheet upon the saddle as it finally is carried to the stitching position (Fig. 2). 1

The operationof this constructional embodiment of the inventionv is as follows:

The work, such as a folded sheet or book signature, to be stitched is opened land placed either manually or by automatic sheet-feeding means upon the auxiliary feeding saddle Sland drawn tothe left against the work-lay or stop I0. As-

suming that the sheet displacing or pusher device P is in its position to the extreme left and slightly beyond the work lay I0 as shown in chain dotted lines in Fig. 1 and in full lines in Figs. 3, 4 and 5 the pusher member P now commences to move to the right to engage and displace the sheet. The laterally overhanging portion of the shoulder 59 almost immediately rides up on to the cam rise of the deflecting member 56 so that the entire'shoulcler piece 59 and the free extremity of the blade spring 55 are lifted to permit the adjacent edge of the sheet now on the saddlev to pass between theshoulder 59 and the bar 54 and so abut the stop 41 in the movement ofthe pusher device P to the right.

When thesheet is thus positioned the overhang of the shoulder 59 passes beyond the deecting member 56 and urged by the spring 55 the shoulder descends to clamp the sheet against the bar 54 as shown inA Figs. 5 and 7. In the continued movement ofy the pusher device P to the right, which may be effected during the movement of the empty stitching saddle S either to the open or closed position, the sheet or signature held thereby isdisplaced in a sliding motion and transferred to the stitching saddle, the position of the sheet upon the saddle S being determined by the amplitude ofthe Ystroke of the pusher device P which is'adjustable and is adjusted according to the size of the work to be positioned beneath the thread stitching means T.

When thesheet is transferred to the saddle S and the latter liesin the extreme open position, the cam follower 3| attached to the rocking arm 30 is positioned at the tail end of the cammed guide 35 so that, as shown in Fig. 8, the sheet re- .taining springs 26 are held away from the apex of the saddle. Since the arm 21 and rocking arms 30, through the resilient linkage of the spring 38,

the cammed face 32 to the valley 45, the deflect- 5 ing member 36 yielding outwards to its passage, thereby permitting the blade springs 26 to be drawn down by the helical spring 34 to clamp the sheet upon the saddle as shown in Fig. 9. The sheetis now securely held upon the saddle in 10 the position determined by the pusher device P, while the saddle continues its movement to the closed or stitching position. Prior to the closing of the saddle to the stitching position the cam follower 3| moving with the lever 21 leaves the l5 cam valley and rides upon the portion 45a. of the cammed face 32 thus lifting the retaining springs away from the saddle S and sheet carried thereon. Immediately following the upward movement of the springs 26 the buffer 44 carried 20 by the lever 21 encounters the stationary buffer 43 A(Fig. 2) so that the lever 21 is withheld from further movement with the saddle S which extends the spring 38 in completing its movement to the stitching position. coincident with or im- 25 mediately before the release of the springs 26 from the saddle S the latter encounters the sheet engaging or smoothing spring fingers 4| Which as above described retain and smooth the sheet upon the saddle. Thus held in correct and pre- 3 determined stitching position the sheet is conveyed by the saddle S to the nal stitching position and stitched to the book pad.

member 36 in the return movement of the saddleo S to the work receiving or open position. VIn this manner the-springs '26 are held raised from the saddle S until the next sheet. is fed thereto by. the pusher device P which has meanwhile been returned to its position to the left as shown in 45 Fig. 1. .The return of the pusher device may be effected after the next sheet is placed upon the auxiliary saddle S since by reason of the plow piece the slide 53 will lift the forward edge of the sheet thus enabling the entire pusher de- 50 Vice P to pass beneath the signature to the left hand position. It will be clear from the above description that thetime taken for the entire cycle of the machine is iade available to the operator for laying work upon the auxiliary saddle while the transfer thereof from the auxiliary saddle to the main saddle can be effected at any point of the opening or closing movement of the empty saddle.

A second constructional embodiment of the invention as shown in Figs. 11 and 12 differs from the first construction above described in that the common pivotal motion of the main and auxiliarysaddles S, ."S'v does not extend over the entire travel of the main saddle but only over some part of the closing movement of the latter.A Despite the increased rate at which the cycle of a stitching machine constructed according to the present invention may be performed it has been found that the transfer of the signature may be effected efficiently in less time than that occupied in the full reciprocation or operative cycle of the stitching saddle in its opening and closing movement.

- Therefore it is possible"-tolimt the extent of ing position. ment the placing of a sheet upon the auxiliary operator can conveniently sit in front of the auxiliary saddle without the extreme motion of the operators arms which is necessary to accommodate the full movement of the main or stitching saddle.

To this end the saddles S and S are separately mounted upon the common pivotal shaft 28; the main or stitching saddle S being actuated in a manner exactly 'similar to that described in the first embodimentthrough the medium of the cam grooved discs Bl mounted upon a drive shaft l l and cam followers 62 carried by extensions of the saddle supporting arms 39, 39a and adapted to engage the cam grooves of the rotatable discs El to impart a pivotal reciprocatory movement to the main saddle S in known manner. in this embodiment however the separately mounted auxiliary saddle S' is positioned to the right hand side of the machine as viewed in the drawings and swinging movement about the pivotal shaft 28 is imparted thereto by means of a cam 48 the contour of which corresponds to that of thegcam grooves in the discs 6l but to a reduced scale and set eccentric thereto sothat the throw of the saddle S corresponds .to that of the main saddle S in respect of the lower or approaching fully open part of the travel of the latter but is greatly reduced in extent during the full closing movement of the main' saddle. The auxiliary saddle S is supported by an arm 'l [secured at its lower extremity to a sleeve or bearing collar 'l la which is journalled upon the also rigidly attached an arm 'l2 carrying a cam follower T3, the latter being held in engagement with the cam :i8 by means of a helical tension spring lt. The saddle S is equipped with a sheet displacing device P, while the saddle S is equipped with sheet retaining springs 26 and sheet retaining and smoothing springs 4l', all of which are precisely similar in construction and operation'to the members of this description in the iirst'embodiment.'

The operation of this embodiment of the invention also is similar to that' of the rst embodiment excepting that the auxiliary and main saddles vare moved independently and tothe different degrees shown in Fig. 12. In travelling from the open to the closed position the main or stitching saddle S moves from the position shown in chain dotted lines to that shown Vin full lines whereas the movement of the auxiliary saddle 'S' is within the limits as indicatedby dotted and full `lines in Fig. 12. Within this limited travel of the saddle S the auxiliary saddle is in precise register therewith so that the transfer of the sheet from the saddle S to the 'saddle S may be performed prior to thelatter attaining the fully opened position or during its return to the stitch- As in the first described embodisaddle may overlap the transferv of the one previouslylaid thereon. l

Moreover, the curtailed movement of the aux-i iliary saddle may be effected in the upper portion of the .travel of themain saddle instead ofthe' lower portion which' to some -extent is a reversal of the last described'arrangement .but could bemade effective when the feed of the sheets isv achieved from an adjacent magazine.

It will be obvious that by the suitable adjustment of the several sheet handling members above I, described folded sheets or other work of various shaft 28 and to which isv device and transferred to said main saddle.

, may readily be dealt with in the manner setv We claim: 1. A book stitching.. machine which includes stitching means; a main pivotal sheet carrier ar- 5- ranged to move to and from said stitching means, an auxiliary sheet carrier arranged to move with said main sheetcarrier, asheet-engagin'g device associated with said carriers, and means for displacing said sheet-engaging device relatively to said carriers so that a sheet laid upon said auxiliary carrier is engaged by said device and transferred to said main carrier during the movement of said carriers.

2. A book-stitching machine which includes stitching means, a main pivotal sheet carrier arranged to move tc and from said stitching means, an auxiliary sheet carrier arranged to move with said main sheet carrier, a sheet-engaging device, and means for reciprocating said sheet-engaging 20 device longitudinally of said sheet carriers so that a sheet laid upon said auxiliary carrier is engaged by said device and vtransferred to said main carrier during the movement of said carrlers.

3. A book stitching machine which includes stitching means, a main pivotal sheet saddle arranged to move to and from said stitching means, an auxiliary sheet `saddle arranged to move with said main sheet saddle,.a sheet-engaging device 30 slidably mounted upon said auxiliary sheet sa'ddle, and vmeans'for reciprocating said sheet cngaging ydevice longitudinally of said auxiliary saddle so that a sheet laid upon said auxiliary saddle is engaged by said device and transferred to said 35 main saddle.

4. A. book stitching l machine which includes stitching means, a main pivotal sheet saddle' ar-` ranged to move to and from said stitchingmeans,

an auxiliary sheet saddle secured to said main 40 p sheet saddle to form a lateral extensionathereof, a sheet engaging device associated with said saddles, and means for displacing said device rela tively to said saddles so that a sheet laid upon said auxiliary saddle is transferred to said main saddle during the movement of the latter.

5. A book stitching machine which includes stitching means, a main pivotal sheet saddle, means for moving said saddle to and from said stitching means, an auxiliary sheet saddle secured to said main saddle to form a lateral extension thereof, a sheet-engaging device slidably mounted upon said auxiliary saddle, and means for moving said sheet-engaging ldevice longitudinally of said auxiliary saddle during the swinging movement of the latter so that a sheet laid upon said auxiliary saddle is engaged by said sheet-engaging s. A bock-stitching -machine which includes stitching means, a main pivotal sheet carrier ar- 60 ranged to move to and-from said stitching means' an auxiliary sheet carrier arranged to move with said main sheet carrier, a sheet-engaging device associated with said carriers, means for displacing said sheet carriers so that a sheet laid upon said auxiliary carrier is'engaged by said device and transferred to said main carrier, and sheet retaining means associated with said main. carrier and arranged to engage and retain upon said main carrier the sheet transferred thereto.4

' .-7. A bock stitching machine. which incluses stitching means, a mainpivotal sheet carrier arranged to moveto and` om said stitching means, an auxiliarysheet carrier arranged to'move with 75 engaging device relatively to said 35 said main sheetcarrier, a sheet-engaging device associated with said carriers, means for displacing said sheet-engaging device relatively to said carriers so that a sheet laid upon said auxiliary carrier is engaged by'said device and transferred to said main carrier, and sheet retaining means arranged to move with said main carrier to engage and retain upon said main carrier the sheet transferred thereto.

8. A book-stitching machine which includes stitching means, a mainpivotal sheet carrier arranged to move to and from said stitching means, an auxiliary sheet carrier arranged to move with said main sheet carrier, a'sheet-engaging device associated with said carriers, means for displacing said sheet-engaging device relatively to said carriers so that a sheet laid upon said auxiliary carrier is engaged by said device and transferred to said main carrier, sheet retaining means arranged to move with said main carrier, and means for imparting secondary movement to said sheet retaining means to engage and retain on said main carrier the sheet transferred thereto.

9. A book-stitching machine which includes stitching means, a' main pivotal sheet carrier larranged to move to and from said stitching means, an auxiliaryv sheet carrier arranged to move withsaid main sheet carrier, a sheet-engaging device associated with said carriers, means for displacing said sheet-engaging device relatively to said carriers so that a sheet laid upon said auxiliary carrier is engaged 4by said device and transferred to said main carrier, sheet retaining means arranged'to move with said main carrier to engage and retain. on said main carrier the sheet transferred thereto, and a 'secondary sheet engaging and smoothing device arranged to contact with the -sheet retained upon said main carrier.

10. A book-stitching machine which includes stitching means, a main pivotal sheet carrier arranged to move to and from said stitching means, an auxiliary sheet carrier arranged to move with said main sheet carrier, a sheet-engaging device associated with said carriers, means for displacing said sheet-engaging device relatively to said carrier so that a sheet laid upon said auxiliary carrier is engaged by said device and transferred to said main carrier, sheet-retaining means ar-v ranged to move with said main canier, means for imparting secondary movement to said sheet-retaining means to engage and retain upon said main carrier the sheet transferred thereto, and means for controlling the secondary movement of said sheet-retaining means so that the latter are caused to release the sheet prior to the stitching of the latter.

11. A book-stitching machine as claimed in claim 10, including ,secondary sheet-engaging members mounted independently of the main carrier and set in the path thereof to engage the sheet borne by said main carrier in its movement to the stitching position.

12. A book-stitching machine as claimed in claim 10, including a stationary supporting member mounted above the path of travel of said main carrier, and resilient sheet-engaging fingers depending from said supporting member to engage the sheet carried by said main carrier.

13. A book-stitching machine `which includes stitching means, a main pivotal sheet carrier, an auxiliary pivotal sheet carrier, driving means for moving said main carrier to and froml said stitching means, separate driving means for moving said auxiliary carrier synchronously with said main carrier over some part of the movement of the latter, sheet-engaging means associated with said sheet carrier, and means for displacing said sheet-engaging member relatively to said carriers to engage a sheet laid upon said auxil- 5 iary carrier and effect its transfer to said main carrier during the synchronous movement of said carriers.

14. A book-stitching machine which includes stitching means, a. main pivotal sheet carrier, an 10 auxiliary pivotal sheet carrier, driving means for moving said main carrier to and from said stitching means, separate driving means for moving said auxiliary carrier synchronously with said main carrier over some part of the movement of l5 the latter and then away from said main saddle in an independent movement, and means for transferring a sheet from said auxiliary carrier to said main carrier during the synchronous movement thereof. 20

15. A book-stitching machine as claimed in claim 14, including sheet retaining means associated with the main carrier, and means for alternately engaging and disengaging said sheet retaining means with the sheet transferred to 25 said main carrier.

16. A book-stitching machine as claimed in claim 14, including sheet retaining means larranged to move with the main carrier, means for imparting secondary movement to said sheet-re- 30 taining means alternately to engage and disengage the latter with the sheet transferred to the main saddle, and secondary sheet-engaging and smoothing members mounted independently of said sheet carriers and positioned to engage the 35 sheet borne upon said main sheet carrier.

17. A book-stitching machine, which includes stitching means, a pivotal main sheet carrier arranged to move to and from said stitching means,

a. pivotal auxiliary sheet carrierarranged to move 40 with said main carrier, a sheet-engaging device slidably mounted upon said auxiliary carrier, meansfor reciprocating said sheet-engaging device longitudinally of said auxiliary carrier during the movement of the latter so as to engage 45 a sheet laid upon said auxiliary carrier and transfer said sheet to said main carrier during the movement of the last mentioned member.

18. A book-stitching machine as claimed in claim 17, in which the sheet-engaging device comprises a slidable carriage, sheet gripper members secured to` said carriage, and means for causing said gripper members automatically to open and close in the movement of said slidable carriage thus to engage a sheet laid upon said l auxiliary carrier.

19. A book-stitching machine as claimed in claim 17, in which the sheet-engaging device comprises a slidable carriage, a gripper member secured to said carriage, a sheet stop s'ecured to 60 said gripper member, a second resilient gripper member associated with said first gripper member and normally contacting therewith, and means for temporarilyparting said gripper members so that inthe displacement of said carriage the sheet on the auxiliary carrier abuts said stop l and is subsequently engaged by said grippers.

20. A book-stitching machine as claimed in claim 17, which includes a sheet-engaging device comprising a slidable carriage, sheet gripper members adjustably secured to said carriage, a sheet stop carried by one of said gripper members, means for temporarily parting said gripper members to engage therewith the sheetlaid upon said auxiliary carrier. a driving device mounted Cil independently of said auxiliary saddle, -loose coupling means for connecting said slidable carriage to said driving means, and a sheet-lay associated With said auxiliary carrier independent of said I sheet-engaging device.

2l. A book-stitching machine as claimed in claim 17, which includes a sheet-engaging device comprising a slidable carriage, sheet gripper members secured to said carriage, a sheet stop carriedv by one of said gripper lmembers, and

vmeans for temporarily parting said gripper memradial centre on the pivotal axis of said auxiliary sheet carrier. l

22. A book-stitching machine comprising, in combination, -stitching means, a main pivotal sheet saddle arranged to move to and from said stitching means, an auxiliary sheet saddle secured to said mainsaddle to form a lateral extension thereof, a sheet-lay to locate a sheet laid upon said auxiliary saddle, reciprocatory means for transferring the sheet from said auxiliary saddle to said main saddle, during the movement of said saddles, sheet retaining means arranged to press the transferred sheet upon said main saddle prior to the idle return movement of said sheet-transferring means, a guide member for piloting s aid sheet-transferring means in its return movement beneath va second sheet laid upon said auxiliary saddle, andsecondary sheet-engaging meansarranged to engage the sheet retained upon said main saddle.

23. A book-stitching machine comprising, in combination, stitching means, a main pivotal sheet saddle'arranged to move to and from said stitching means, an auxiliary sheet saddle secured to -said main saddle to form a lateral extension lthereof, a sheet-lay to locate a sheet laid uponsaid auxiliary saddle, a reciprocatory sheet gripper slidably' mounted upon said auxiliary saddle, driving means mounted independently of said saddles, to reciprocate said sheet gripperlongitudinally of said saddles thus to engage the sheet laid upon' said'auxiliary saddle and effect lthe transferthereof to said main saddle, loose coupling means to establish driving connection'between said sheet gripper and said driving means, pivotally mounted blade springs associated with said main saddle and arranged to retain .on the latter the sheet transferred from said auxiliary saddle, means for displacing said sheet retaining springs from said sheet prior to the stitching of the sheet, and secondary sheet-engaging and smoothing membersv arranged in the path of travel of said main saddle to vengage the sheet thereon prior to the displacing movement of said sheet-retaining springs.

2 4. A book-stitching machine comprising, in

combination, stitching means, a main pivotal 10'l sheet arranged to. move to andfrom said stitching means, anauxiliary sheet ,saddle'mounted upon a pivotal axis common to said main carrier, means for moving said auxiliary saddle synchronously with said main saddle through part of the movement of the latter, la sheet-lay to locate a sheet laid upon said auxiliary saddle, reciprocatory means for transferring the sheet Afrom said auxiliary saddle to said main saddle during the movement of said saddles, sheetretaining means arranged to press the transferred sheet upon said main saddle prior to the idle return movement of said sheet-transferring means, a guide member for piloting said sheettransferring means in its return movement beneath a second sheet laid upon said auxiliary saddle, and secondaryl sheet-engaging means arranged to engage the s'heet retained upon said main saddle. l

25, A book-stitching machine comprising, in 3o combination, stitching means, a main pivotal sheet arranged to move to and from said stitching means, an auxiliary sheet saddle mountedupon a pivotal axis common to said main carrier, means for moving said auxiliary saddle synchronously with said main saddle through part of the movement of 'the latter, a sheet-lay to locate a sheetl laid upon said auxiliary s'addle, a. reciprocatory sheet gripper slidably mounted upon said auxiliary saddle, driving means mounted inde- 40 pendently of said saddles to reciprocate said sheet gripper longitudinally of said saddles, thus to engage the 'sheet laid upon said auxiliary saddle and effect the transfer thereof to said main saddle, loose coupling means to establish driving'. 45 connection between said sheet* gripper and said driving means, pivotally mounted blade springs associated with said main saddle and arranged to retain on the latter the sheet transferred from said auxiliary saddle, means for displacing said sheet 4retaining springs from said sheet prior to the stitching of the sheet, and secondary sheet-A A engaging and smoothing members arranged in osKAR MLLER. 

